GALAPAGOS

An awesome bird and wildlife adventure

Galapagos Islands Birding Tours: our Galapagos bird watching and wildlife holiday is one of a series of Ecuador bird watching trips that we offer. Our Galapagos Islands birding tour achieves comprehensive coverage of the islands and their many endemic birds and other fascinating creatures. Few Galapagos tours achieve this level of coverage.

Lava Herons and Sally Lightfoot Crab, two of the many endemic species found along the stark volcanic shores of the 'Enchanted Islands' (Andy Swash)

The Galapagos archipelago is special for the naturalist in many ways. It has one of the highest rates of endemism of any island group in the world and harbours many unique creatures, including several forms of giant tortoise, the strange Marine Iguana and no fewer than 30 endemic species of birds, plus a series of near-endemics and breeding endemics. It is largely unspoilt by development, its ecology has not been extensively disrupted or even destroyed by harmful introductions of alien species and it is renowned for the total fearlessness of its wildlife, allowing extremely close yet harmless approach and some of the best wildlife photography opportunities on earth. Moreover, it is a starkly beautiful group of islands with some truly superb scenery.

The islands are also justly famous as the birthplace of Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution through natural selection and the inspiration for his book The Origin of Species, formulated after his visit over 170 years ago. This world in microcosm is situated on the Equator some 1000 kilometres (600 miles) out into the Pacific Ocean off Ecuador. Here Darwin found a raw, active volcanic world that was geologically young and had never been joined to the continents. He found it inhabited by a strange, almost random, selection of plants, reptiles, birds and mammals – all of which had apparently reached the islands by chance and were in the process of ‘coming to terms’ with their new-found environment, slowly evolving into new species that would be adapted to an often harsh and demanding habitat.

Thanks to the isolation of the archipelago, its general inhospitability to man and the generations of zoologists who followed Darwin and made the world aware of the unique phenomenon that is the Galapagos, many of the islands can still be seen in a fairly similar condition to that which Darwin viewed them in 1835. Although depredations by whalers, sealers, settlers and passing mariners took their toll of wildlife in the past, the Ecuadorian government declared most of the 8000 square kilometres (nearly 3100 square miles) of the archipelago, which consists of over 50 islands, a national park in 1959. It is now carefully protected as one of the most precious of the world’s natural showpieces.

On some of the flatter islands, recent lava flows, some smooth and rope-like, others jagged and clinker-like, still await their first covering of vegetation, while older flows nearby are already thick with cacti, spiky shrubbery and white-barked Palo Santo trees adapted to the arid climate. The volcanic peaks rise to over 1700m (5578ft) and the scant upland soils support a thicker, lusher vegetation that benefits from a more humid climate. Along the coasts, beautiful white, black and red sand beaches contrast with mangrove-fringed lagoons and tall cliffs of volcanic cinders. Isabela, one of the more recently formed islands, is the largest in the archipelago at over 100 kilometres (60 miles) long, and at the other extreme are tiny eroded islets, remnants of old volcanic cones, that now support large and spectacular seabird colonies. This variety of terrestrial habitats combined with surrounding cold oceanic currents with their abundant marine life makes for a rich pattern of wildlife. The isolation of the Galapagos has of course stimulated the evolution of endemic plants and animals – many confined to single islands within the archipelago. This will make every day of the tour a unique experience in itself, as we sail from island to island finding new sights and new species at each.

A visit to the Galapagos provides an unforgettable, absolutely fantastic wildlife experience for every type of natural history enthusiast. Our tour has been specially designed to be the ultimate in wildlife tours to the Galapagos, aiming to provide an in-depth appreciation of the islands (as part of a dedicated natural history group) in a way not possible on the large cruise ships, which take up to 100 or more passengers (many with little interest in wildlife), whose much shorter periods ashore inevitably make for a rushed and incomplete experience.

We shall be travelling on a very comfortable motor yacht, allowing us to visit areas only accessible to smaller boats (and get there without spending too much time over it). The itinerary has been carefully worked out to ensure that we have plenty of time at each place we go ashore to see the wildlife and to appreciate it in our own way. It will give us the best chance of finding all of the islands’ accessible endemic birds and many of the endemic reptiles, including both Marine and Land Iguanas, and the famous Giant Tortoises that gave their name to the archipelago (galápagos means ‘riding saddle’ in Spanish and is probably a reference to the shell shape of some of the endemic forms).

During our voyage through this magical archipelago we plan to visit Seymour (or North Seymour), Genovesa (or Tower), Isabela (or Albemarle), Fernandina (or Narborough), Floreana (or Charles), Española (or Hood), Santa Cruz (or Indefatigable) and San Cristóbal (or Chatham). Cruising amongst the islands is an intensely exciting experience, yet at the same time wonderfully relaxing, with time between landfalls to watch this strange world pass by (and admire the local cetaceans and seabirds), and whilst at anchor, get into the water and snorkel amongst beautiful tropical fish and ever-curious sealions. Of all the wildlife journeys we make on this marvellous but threatened planet of ours, we rate our Galapagos voyages amongst the most amazing and most memorable experiences.

Our handsome, first-class motor yacht, the Nemo III, has 8 cabins available for either twin or single occupancy and comfortably takes up to 14 passengers. Five cabins have two single berths and three have a double berth for couples. The pleasant cabins are air-conditioned, have ample storage space, a private bathroom with hot shower, and 110v AC electrical outlets (with USA-type sockets). On-board instrumentation includes satellite navigation, radar, sonar, single sideband radio and cellular phone. Being a catamaran, Nemo III is a very stable boat (so there is minimal chance of seasickness unless you are unusually prone, or there is atypical weather for this time of year!) and is spacious overall, with a large outdoor viewing/lounging area, and a spacious inside dining and lounge/bar area. The boat carries a crew of seven plus a university-level naturalist-guide. If you want a very special Galapagos wildlife adventure, Nemo III can surely provide it. For full details and photographs of Nemo III, one of the best modern yachts available in the Galapagos, have a look at http://nemogalapagoscruises.com

For anyone with a keen interest in birds, it is vital to select a yacht which has an authorized itinerary that includes all the key islands, and in particular both Genovesa (or Tower) and Española (or Hood), deservedly renowned as the very best of the Galapagos ‘enchanted islands’. Our chosen yacht has the necessary permissions to achieve the perfect itinerary for keen birders.

Birdquest has operated tours to Galapagos since 1989.

The Nature of Galapagos Bird & Wildlife Tours: Tours to Galapagos are very different from most birding tours, and it is important to understand this and accept how Galapagos birding and wildlife tours roll before signing up for one.

The way landings work in Galapagos is tightly controlled by the Galapagos National Park authorities in order to minimize the ’footfall’ of visitors. Only a limited number of boats and visitors are allowed to visit any given site on any given morning or afternoon. Landing periods run from 0600-1200 and 1200-1800, with no exceptions allowed, nor can the order of landings be altered or landing sites varied. So, even if we see the endemic birds in 20 minutes, there is zero possibility of moving on straight away to a new landing site, even if we wanted to!

Of course, almost all of our participants find Galapagos such an awesome experience, with its incredibly tame and trusting wildlife, that longer landings are welcomed, not considered a disadvantage. The only alternative, as it is not allowed to split up the group during a landing, would be for everyone to return to the boat early and wait on board until the time to move to the next pre-determined landing site arrived. Clearly that is not going to happen on our tours!

Also, participants on our tours realise Galapagos is a unique wildlife encounter opportunity and the great majority want to extensively photograph all these tame and often spectacular creatures that allow one to get right up to them, even while they display or otherwise exhibit fascinating behaviour. If you are not a photographer yourself, you will need to be tolerant of this. You can watch away to your heart’s content while others photograph and you can be sure that other participants photographing Galapagos wildlife is never going to result in any accessible Galapagos endemic bird being missed. Almost every accessible endemic is easy to see and on those very few occasions where they are not (for example, Galapagos Crake) the hunt for the endemic will have total priority.

Accommodation & Transport: For our cruise in the Galapagos we shall be based on Nemo III, our first class motor catamaran (a twin-hulled yacht) with twin or double berth cabins (available for either twin or single occupancy) with private bathroom. The hotel near Quito airport is of good standard. The few roads in the islands are of variable quality. Road transport will be by small coach or minibus, or even ‘truck-bus’ on more remote islands.

Walking: The walking effort in the islands is mostly easy, but some nature trails on the islands are over rougher terrain where a little agility, or a stick, are required.

Climate: From sea-level to moderate altitudes in Galapagos it is predominantly warm or hot all year. Sunny and overcast conditions tend to alternate (but rain is only likely at these elevations between January and April, when the humidity is rather high). Conditions in the highlands are similar but cooler and there can be rain showers at any time of year (with frequent rainfall between January and April). From May to December, low cloud often shrouds the highlands, but the lowlands are usually sunny.

Wildlife Photography: Opportunities are simply outstanding (there are few if any places in this world that are better!). Landings on our tour are of longer duration than those made by most visitors (we start earlier and end later than they do), thus maximising opportunities for our group members. Early in the morning, we often have landing sites to ourselves.

Can be taken together with: BEST OF ECUADOR

GALAPAGOS BIRDING & WILDLIFE TOUR: PRICE INFORMATION

Birdquest Inclusions: our tour prices include all flights and all tipping ashore. Some bird tour operators do not do this, yet for participants these costs are an unavoidable part of the tour. The value of these inclusions on this Birdquest tour amounts to approximately $700.

£5440, €6230, $7350 Quito/Quito.

Deposit: £1500, €1700, $2000 (plus 30% if you are taking a single occupancy cabin).

Galapagos national park fees of US$100 (subject to change) are payable by the individual passenger at passport control in the Galapagos and are not included in the tour price.

Gratuities on board the yacht for the naturalist-guide and crew are not included in the tour price. The staff work very long hours to make such cruises a success, including a great deal of night sailing, and passengers usually give gratuities totalling around US$200 at the end of the cruise.

Single Cabin Supplement: If you would like guaranteed single occupancy of a cabin on board the boat, there are two cabins (numbers 7 and 8) available for single occupancy. These cabins are accessed off Nemo's dining area by large sliding hatches rather than conventional doorways. These cabins are available at an additional charge of £1110, €1270, $1500.

Please note that if you opt to share you will not have to pay the single occupancy supplement even if you do not end up with a cabin-mate.

Single Room Supplement in Quito and Santa Cruz: £160, €180, $210.

Please note that if you are sharing a cabin on board ship but there is no room-mate available at Quito and Santa Cruz, then you will have to pay the supplement for a single room ashore.

This tour is priced in US Dollars. Amounts shown in other currencies are indicative.

Air Travel To & From The Tour: Our in-house IATA ticket agency will be pleased to arrange your air travel on request, or you may arrange this yourself if you prefer.

An extraordinary lack of fear of humans is characteristic of the Galapagos and helps to make it one of the most extraordinary and rewarding bird and wildlife journeys on our planet. This Galapagos Hawk was photographed with a standard camera lens! (Mark Beaman)

Marine Iguanas are as unwary as the birds, sunning themselves in the middle of the nature trails on Fernandina (Mark Beaman)

Talk about prehistoric-looking creatures... (Mark Beaman)

The most famous birds of Galapagos are the drably-coloured but extraordinarily diverse Darwin's finches, the group that more than any other led the great scientist to formulate his Theory of Evolution. Large Ground-Finch is the biggest-beaked of them all (Mark Beaman)

Seabirds are one of the glories of Galapagos and the huge Waved Albatross is the king of the islands (Mark Beaman)

Many of the flight-inclusive holidays on this website are financially protected by the ATOL scheme. But ATOL protection does not apply to all holiday and travel services listed on this website. Please ask us to confirm what protection may apply to your booking. If you do not receive an ATOL Certificate then the booking will not be ATOL protected. If you do receive an ATOL Certificate but all the parts of your trip are not listed on it, those parts will not be ATOL protected. Please see our booking conditions for information, or for more for more information about financial protection and the ATOL Certificate go to: www.atol.org.uk/ATOL Certificate